The Obvious Choice
by Amaranth Rencor
Summary: Yep. I'm the nerdy chicken-boy. My name is Rick." A girl named Claire comes to Mineral Town to work the old, farm. The local poultry farmer becomes smitten with her but doesn't believe he's her obvious choice. RickxClaire, Rick POV. ***CHAPTER 3 UP!
1. Her Arrival

Alright, I'm going to give you some images and you tell me what you think of the people I've described…

Gleaming blond hair that falls as far down as the small of her back, clad in three-sizes-too-big denim overalls.

Eyes as cerulean as pieces cut from a perfect cloudless, summer sky; as deep as the world's largest ocean and twice as mysterious.

A smile to brighten the darkest corners and a laugh to warm the coldest hearts. Not to mention brimming with ambition.

The ability to stun everyone in her wake.

A lop-sided smile with huge, thick-lensed glasses that muddled the green-blue eyes behind them. Strawberry blond hair, way too long for a guy, swept away from a pale face by a white sweatband and falls to shoulder length.

An ever-present, worn blue apron that seemed to raise questions about the individual's orientation along with a green turtleneck and khaki pants.

A nervous and slightly shy personality. The kind of person who was over-protective bordering on obsessive and yet humble and kind.

Throw in a love for chickens and hard work ethics.

Unnoticed.

An aloof, level-headed, almost anti-social young man. Mature beyond his years, who keeps people at a distance.

An enigma like a vast puzzle just waiting to be solved, but no one to attempt it.

Tall, smart, handsome, completely independent. Alluring without meaning to be.

Good at his profession and admired by all, even if at a distance.

Constantly wearing a long white lab coat and a head light.

Always looking to better himself.

In his own way, kind. Concerned for everyone.

Now, which one do you think is me?

Yup, I'm the chicken-nerd. My _name_ is Rick.

I'm not nearly as ambitious or successful as the doctor ( Mr. Enigmatic Puzzle Guy). I can't be, really. I have to work my ass of on the chicken farm my family owns to support them. My family is grateful, of course, and everyone in Mineral Town thinks I'm a amazing to take on all that responsibility, yet the Doctor is still held in higher regard. I suppose, as well he should be… He does save lives and all, not feed fowls. Even I need him, well, my mother does.

Oh, that beautiful blond? That's Claire. She recently moved to here and took over the farm at the bottom of town.

Who do you picture a young woman such as herself with?

Gee, hard one.

But let me start from the beginning, when she first moved here, to Mineral Town, to take on that deteriorating farm so close to my own…

--*--

It was the beginning of Spring, fresh air that smelled of new life enveloped me in the midmorning sunshine. It felt so great after the winter freeze. The air and slight breeze still held a bit of the chill, but it was refreshing all the same.

I was outside, walking back from my daily morning talk with Karen.

Ah, yes, Karen has been my friend since birth, pretty much. She's such a tomboy. But a great friend to confide in about anything.. While she knows I don't like her slight drinking problem, she still gets drunk bi-weekly at the bar at the Inn. She does it to irk me, I'm sure of it. But it's not so funny when I have to drag her home, slurring up a storm.

She just flicks her long brown hair with those two lighter almost blond pieces at the front and tells me the craziest stories from our childhood as she saw them. I can't help but laugh.

But… Sometimes I think she uses it as an escape… Her mother and father don't get along that well. Everyone knows about it.

That's one of the downfalls of living in a small town; word travels fast and is often altered from the truth. The ladies and their daily gossip group in the town square see to that.

Once, it got around that I was gay because of my apron (I told you it raised questions!). I never really found out how, but it all got sorted out when Sasha, one of the women in the gossip circle ( who also happens to be Karen's mother) had a talk with the rest of the ladies.

Sasha is a good friend of my mom's, she knew I wore the apron because I took care of the chickens, since neither my mom or sister could.

Oh, my sister. What can I say? Her name is Popuri and she can be quite a handful, so I try and protect her from everything. Especially this one guy that comes to Mineral Town every summer, Kai. He's an irresponsible jerk who spends all the other seasons out gallivanting across the world. He's a real ladies man.

Unfortunately, my sister has a crush on him, and I hate his guts. We often have fights about how over-protective I am. But I can't help it! She's making mistakes because she doesn't know any better.

I guess I'll talk about my mom a bit. She's been very sick for a while now. She doesn't go outside anymore unless it's to the Clinic. My ifather/i left us to go find a flower to cure her sickness. Something about a flower that blooms once every 10 years in a distant desert…? I don't remember. I wish he'd just stayed here…

So, anyways, I was just about on the Poultry Farm when I saw this girl run past me. She had long blond hair that streamed behind her and wore overalls and seemed to be in a big hurry to get to the north side of town. I knew right away she wasn't from around here, but I didn't think she could be a tourist. We didn't get many of those.

I shrugged it off and headed into the house/shop. You see, most everyone in Mineral Town lived where they worked and vice versa.

I went upstairs to our bedrooms and proceeded to do the chores that lay waiting for me.

AS I was folding and putting away the laundry, I heard Popuri from downstairs.

"Oh! So you're the new girl at the farm? I'm Popuri, nice to meet you!" she said in her usual bubbly voice. Somewhat quieter introductions followed.

New girl at the farm…? Oh no, that stupid newspaper ad the Mayor had put out had reeled in another poor soul? I wondered absentmindedly how long this one was going to stay. Most took one look and ran.

I heard Popuri come bounding up the stairs and looked over. She had an enormous grin plastered on her face.

"Hey, Rick, there's this girl that's—"

"Yes, I heard." I sighed, still folding.

She looked a little miffed that I'd interrupted her, but continued all the same.

"She's going to stay! For sure! She moved—oh, why don't you go talk to her?" Popuri was only this excited whenever _he_ came to town. This farmer girl must really be something… There was something else she was keeping from me that she wanted desperately to say…

I decided not to ask, as I might be sorry for it after and just sighed again. "Another day.. I need to finish these chores or they'll keep piling up."

Popuri puffed out her cheeks and raised her shoulders like she usually does when she's angry.

Just as she was about to launch a lecture on me, someone called from downstairs, " Is everything okay up there?"

"Yes! Just a minute and my brother will be iright down/i" my sister replied, then glowered at me again. "Get down there and be polite!"

"But—" I protested

She pushed me towards the stairs and I glared in return.

Suddenly, she seemed to change her mind about letting me go just yet; she walked over, smoothed my hair a bit and straightened my clothes.

"What are you doing?" I grumbled. "I have a lot to do! I'm not going to stand here and have you give me a make over."

Popuri seemingly ignored my complaint and said quietly, "She's cute."

I felt my face grow warm. "So?! Why would that matter to me?"

My sister gave me a smirk and raised an eyebrow.

"Go on." She giggled and gave me another light shove. I ended up stumbling down the stairs and would have turned right around and given Popuri a piece of my mind if…

…If I hadn't seen _her._

She looked at me quizzically and with concern through blonde bangs.

It took me a moment to realize she had been the girl who had rushed by me not an hour before.

_She_ was taking on that monstrosity of a farm? By herself?!

I gave her a quick look up and down.

"So…" I began slowly, tying to smile. "You're the new owner of that farm, huh?"

She nodded, sending her long golden tresses into a cascade of small, shimmering ripples. "I'm Rick. I work here, on the Poultry Farm." I said, stepping closer and extending my hand to her.

"I'm Claire." She smiled and shook it. And for the first time in a long while, I felt my face crack into a big, giddy grin.

She laughed a bit and tugged her hand, which I was apparently still holding on to.

"Oh—" I felt the tips of my ears go red. "Sorry…"

She shook her head. "Oh, right! I came here to look at prices!" she said, slapping her forehead.

She asked how much a chicken was, then the feed and the medicine and I answered. At the end, she looked slightly dismayed.

"What's wrong?" I asked, pushing my glasses up on my nose.

"I don't have enough money…" Claire sighed, twiddling her thumbs. "I'm trying on the farm, I really am, But I'm still new at this, it's hard… I did just move from the city, after all."

Wow, I was behind with the news. When had she come here? And--- hey, wait, she's a city girl? A city girl is going to run that farm? It was almost laughable, and had Claire been anyone else, I would have doubted she could do it.

Even though I'd just met her, there was something that practically emanated from her. A determination of sorts: she'd set her mind to making that place into a real farm and she was going to stick with it. I knew she wasn't going to give up like all the others.

I guess that's what made me offer what I did.

"Hey, listen.. Tomorrow is Sunday, and I don't have any chores tomorrow since the Poultry Farm is closed… What if I..." I paused to lick my lips, suddenly nervous.

Claire looked at me, curious."…if I come down to the farm and help for the day?"

Her blue eyes widened at my suggestion.

"Really? You'd do that?!" she was ecstatic.

"Well, sure! Why not?"

She almost leaped over and hugged me, but caught herself and just grinned from ear to ear.

"I'll be over at around, say, eight, okay?" I couldn't help but mile back. It was infections, that happiness of hers.

"Alright! See you then!" and then she was out the door in a flash.

Eight, huh? I thought to myself, realizing my small mistake. Well, I was sure Karen wouldn't mind if we missed one day out of the year of our morning chats.

The rest of the day went far too slow, in my opinion. I was eager to go help my new neighbour the following day, but nervous again at the same time. I couldn't figure out why…


	2. A Day on the Farm p1

Oh my gaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaawd--! Did I ACTUALLY work on a new chapter for this story?!

Yes I did~ I've had this written for months, but not urge to type when i had time or no time to type when I had the urge. XD;

Well, this was typed all today, in about 2-3 hours. Not sure how long really, i goo distracted every now and again...

ANYWAYS, enjoy, thank you for those who are continuing to read this very slow moving story~

I'll say this again--------Even though I may not replay to reviews (due to teh fact that I am a very lazy person who finds FF's method of replying very awkward...) I do appreciate them very much~-------------

For all who have faved/ reviewed so far, you have my thanks~ XD

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own Harvest Moon**. **It is copyright to Natsume. **I own many of teh series' games, however, not the actual copyright D: (if I did, there sure as hell would be some guy/guy stuffs in there WAHAHAHA-*shot* )

This is purely a work of fiction dedicated to my favourite HM game, _More Friends of Mineral Town_ for Gameboy Advance.

**Point out any errors in grammar or spelling you see, if it really bugs you~ I don't re-read my stuff *shot*

Alright, enough of my ramblings, on with the story!

* * *

I woke up at five the next morning. I was eager and, well, lets face it, I had a huge load of chores to do before I could go help Claire. Family business first, you know? And seeing as the family business was poultry, I had to go tend to the chickens.

…Huh, now that I think about it, I don't even know the name of Claire's farm… I'll have to make a point of asking her when I get there.

Kind of sad really; me living beside that farm my entire life and not even knowing the name of the farm. The old man who used to live there had told me the name once (he was a great guy) but that as when I was just a little kid of six. He'd been dead for over a decade and, being now 22, I couldn't for the life of me remember what that land had been called. Though, Claire might have very well changed it anyways, so it didn't matter and hey—I'm supposed to be doing chores, not reminiscing about farm names!

When I walked into the chicken coop, I was instantly greeted by the hens. They all crowded around me trying to get their breakfast.

I laughed and shuffled through the white, feathery cluster speckled with red to the fodder bin.

Taking a handful of feed, I brought my hand down so that they could eat from it and was instantly engulfed in a flurry of white feathers and excited clucking.

I felt my hand getting nipped at, which I had anticipated, but one of the newer hens nipped just a bit too hard.

I yelped and withdrew, scattering the feed instead.

I couldn't go and have my hands nicked up and hindering me while I was tending to farm chores, so I just threw the rest of the feed.

Once I had collected all the eggs and checked to make sure no one was unhappy or sick, I stepped back outside.

Taking in a deep breath of the early morning air almost stung my nose and throat. It was still early spring and a little on the cold side.

I would be relieved to get over to the farm and work up a sweat.

The sun was just barely making a dent in the still-dark sky and that made me wonder just how early it was.

I checked my wristwatch. It used to be my dad's, but he had given it to me before he left. I treasured the thing and made a note to take it off before heading over to Claire's.

Anyway, it was 6:30.

I went back into the house to pack myself a lunch.

There was a yawn behind me that made me jump.

"R-Rick?" It was Popuri.

She came downstairs so quietly, I hadn't even heard her.

She rubbed the sleep out of her eyes, giving another delicate yawn

"Rick, what are you doing?" she asked, stretching.

"What's it look like? Packing a lunch."

She rolled her eyes. "Obviously. But _why_? Going out somewhere?"

"Yep, helping out Claire for the day." I replied.

"The new farmer girl?" She seemed suddenly more awake.

"Uh-huh." I got an elbow in the side and a sly smirk.

"Ow, what?!" I growled, rubbing my bruised ribs.

Popuri just giggled and skipped away.

I packed a spa-boiled egg (my favourite), some rice and a bit of jelly bread then headed out the door.

"What's her problem?" I grumbled.

I looked up the road, opposite to where I was headed and saw Gray storming up the path.

Bad mood… Hat that said 'UMA' in big letters… Not much had changed in all the years I'd known him.

I don't think I've ever seen him give a real smile and the only time he talks to m is to call me 'Chicken Boy', which had grown less and less frequent as time wore on from our early teens.

Not wanting today to be one of those "off-chance" days, I briskly walked the other way and turned down the long road leading to the farm.

I arrived some ten minutes earl, but I didn't see Claire.

The field was the first thing that caught my attention. It still had huge rocks and boulders and a stump or two littered on it, but a decent patch of the land was cleared of weeds and in the distance, I could even see the start of a small, stone fence.

No crops to speak of, though; none that I could see.

There was a bit of soil that had been tilled (albeit messily), but no seeds had been sewn.

I heard the creak of rusty hinges behind me and turned to see Claire stepping out of the tiny cottage.

"Mmn… Rick? Yo-you're early…" she said sleepily, still straightening the straps on her overalls.

"S-sorry. I just, uh… I figured better early than late." I probably should have waited before just waltzing onto her property. I was usually so polite and conscientious of those sorts of things…! Why had that basic courtesy slipped my mind…? Ah well, everyone has off days, I suppose.

The farmer just smiled. "Don't worry about it. I slept in. Normally, I'm up bright and early at six, but I worked real late into the night."

"Wow… It really must be tough…" I murmured while taking another long look at the property.

"Yeah, well…Today I have help." She said and gave me another grin.

I returned it.

"Alright! You start weeding the field, I'll go collect honey." Claire said, trying to appear more awake than she really was.

About an hour later, I was still pulling clumps of plant-life out of the parched soil. It was harder than I thought, and the field was enormous! Sure, our small field got weeds, but never this many and-- "They were never… This tough… To pull _out_!" I grunted as I yanked at a particularly stubborn weed that refused to relinquish its hold from the earth.

"Not so easy, huh?" a voice said from behind. (man, that was happening a lot to me today…!) I was so startled that my unbalanced position made me fall over.

Claire giggled. "Sorry."

"Don't worry about it." I coughed and straightened my glasses. "Hey, I saw some tilled spots back there. Aren't you going to plant stuff?"

Claire looked over her shoulder to where I had mentioned.

"Well.." she started, "I would, but I have no idea what to plant…"

Oh no, seriously? Man… I'm not all the knowledgeable either. Pfft, like I was gonna let her know that.

"Well, what—ngh—have you got? Ah—" I finally managed to pull that weed out of the ground and threw it over my shoulder to join the small pile I had started with rather smug satisfaction.

"…Nothing…" Claire squeaked sheepishly, not looking at me.

"What? Well, why don't you go to the Super Market? They have seeds there. Pick up two bags of… of turnip seeds. You've got enough for that, right?" She nodded.

"Well okay then! I'll finish up here, you go on up to the north end of town. Just take the road off your farm up as far as it goes and then turn right. You'll see the store no problem." I stood, wincing has I heard my back crack and pop.

"See you when I get back!" She shouted, already running off.

I sighed.

There was still so much work left to do. I have to hand it to Claire, this was real hard work, I commended her for putting up with it. She truly was stronger than most people were giving her credit for.

The sun was beginning to get higher in the sky and warm the air. I pulled my hair back and tied it in a pony tail.

Really, honesty and truly, I have no idea why I keep my hair so long. It gets me made fun of, always has. I..I guess I like having sort of long hair, but maybe it would be more practical to get it cut…?

I knelt to pull up another rweed when a small brown, floppy-eared puppy bounded up to me. It wagged its tail and barked.

"Well, hello there little, err…" I picked it up."…Guy. What'cha doing?"

The puppy squirmed out of my grip and started growling at the weed. I chuckled and bent down to his face—er, muzzle-level.

"What, you wanna help?"

Suddenly, the puppy took my glasses right off my nose and ran with them.

"H-hey! Get back here!" I yelled and tried to give chase.

Saying it was hard for me to see without my glasses would be an understatement; I could barely see past my nose!

Needless to say, trying to see a small brown dog on a large brown field) isn't the easiest of things for a near-sighted guy like myself.

I tried watching for motion, but the felid was still thatched with green blobs that the dog was probably hiding under.

"C'mon! I can't see a thing! No fair!"

I had the wind knocked out of me as I hit the ground.

I'd tripped over something, probably a rock or a branch or something to that effect.

I stood and dusted myself off. I was not very amused.

"Come on over here you little…!"

"Rick?"

I blinked and saw a fuzzy outline of yellow and blue.

The dog barked.

"Daby!" It was Claire. "Give me that! Drop it!"

"Is he yours?" I asked.

"Yeah, but he isn't trained yet, sorry."

"I should have been more careful. I laughed as Claire handed me back my glasses. I put them back on, gratefully, only to find everything still muddled.

"Oh!" Claire stifled a laugh. "Daby.." she scolded, handing me a handkerchief.

I wiped the drool and dirt off.

"Get the seeds?" I asked testing to see if my glasses where clean enough. Once I was satisfied, I handed the small checkered piece of fabric back to Claire.

"Mmhm!" She nodded and procured two white bags of seeds from a pouch in her overalls.

She explained in frustrated tones that she simply couldn't plow her field right on account of her hoe being broken. I was shown the tool.

She had hit a rock and cracked the wooden handle in half.

"Well, it sounds like we need to make a trip to see Saibara." I said.

"Sai-who?" she asked, raising an eyebrow.

"He's the blacksmith here, He'll have this fixed up in no time flat!" I explained as we marched back into town.

As we stepped into the shop, I looked for the short, gruff old man, but he was no where to be seen.

"Oh, excuse me!" Claire said, waving to someone.

To the one someone who I'd hoped wouldn't be here.

Gray.

"What?" he grunted, glaring from his place at the forge.

Claire seemd unfazed. "Um, I need a quick-fix for my hoe."

Gray sauntered over, fixing me with his steely gaze. Oddly enough, it changed to an almost civil one as he spoke to Claire.

"Oh yeah? Let me see it,"

Claire laid the pieces of the counter and explained what had happened. She said she felt like a horrible farmer.

Once she finished Gray simply walked away with the head of the hose, pulled out the remaining wood and replaced it with a new, darker wood handle.

"This is stringer than the old one. It absorbs shock better, but don't go using it as a hammer anymore, okay?" he said. Then upon noticing Claire's still unhappy expression, added, "That handle was going to give out anyway, it was so old. It wasn't your fault it broke."

She smiled broadly at him, and I found myself ever so slightly… What was the feeling?… No.. it couldn't be…?

"Thank you so much. How much do I owe you, uh, um… Sa-Saibara…?"

Gray chuckled and, Goddess strike me down where I stand, he actually _ smiled._

"Saibara is the grumpy old man who normally sits behind the counter. He's my grandfather. I'm just his apprentice, Gray. "

Claire nodded. "I'm Claire, the new farmer."

"Come back any time you need a fix, 'kay Claire?"

She beamed. There was that feeling again… "You bet!"

She turned to leave, fixed tool in hand, and grabbed my sleeve.

"C'mon, Rick! Lets go!"

Upon the mention of my name, the smile vanished into oblivion and was replaced by a frown and cold blue eyes.

He glared daggers at me as I was dragged from the store.

I sighed with relief when the considerable cooler midday air hit my face. That place was always so hot.

"You two don't like each other much, do you?"

I was caught off-guard by her blunt perceptiveness, although _anyone_ could have put together that Gray and I weren't exactly buddies.

"Ah, well... Yeah, not really…" I admitted, brushing stray hair from my face.

Claire just sighed and shook her head.

"You'll have to tell me about everyone in Mineral Town as we work, huh?"

"Oh, yeah, sure thing."

* * *

Gray gets too much attention, in my opinion. He's the moody kid that glares at people Dl I courted him once just for fun. He's just too hard and cold D: *is mean* But he is in here to create ANOTHER rival for Claire. Poor girl.

Claire: A-another? I'm in a love triangle?

More like quadrangle :3 (K: That's a square, you moron...)

Eeeeheehee, Rick is so dense it's painful, but I'm playing his character out to be that way XD;;

Continue to love Rick everyone~ 8D *is done being crazy so she skips off*


	3. A Day on the Farm p2

Oh maaaai, lookie, another chapter~! Typed it all up today~ XDD  
And this is the last chapter I have completed, so it'll be a bit of a wait until teh next one (I hope it's worth it...? ._.'' )

I realize that Rick has changed somewhat since the last chapter.. And I apologize XD;; In writing he was quite teh same, but the writing needed an update, so we get this.. XD;; Sorry if it sounds awwkward, but I want Rick to be less oblivious... I think he's better this way.

AND MIZUI SAYS YOU SHOULD ALL GO READ "Tell Me Why" by sugarapplesweet *shot for advertising other stories that aren't even her own* Well hey, it's an awesome story~ Go read it ;A; it is what fueled my passion to type this~! *read it for teh 2nd time* (lulz, but on my PSP, I read everything on that and then forget to review D: *fail* )

**I do not own Harvest Moon or these characters.** I just enjoy messing with them c:

**UPDATE: I've given teh chapters proper (crappy) names, just 'cause I can~

...ON WITH THE STORY~

* * *

**A Day on the Farm p2**

"No, no, hold your hand further up the shaft; it gives you more control over it.

"Like this?" Claire moved her hand up to near the head of the hoe.

"No, don't choke it! Lower your hands a little."

"Lower…?"

"No, now that's too low."

Claire groaned in frustration. She seemed about ready to give up.

"Let me show you…" I was about to position her hands for her, but thought better of it at the last moment. The position seemed a bit too intimate for people who had just met, even if I _was_ just helping her. Didn't want her to get the wrong idea.

Well, those reasons and the fact that I become flustered easily and can't very well hide it.

So, instead, I gently took the tool from her hands and showed her. I'd been tilling the fields at the poultry farm for years. I certainly wasn't any good in the beginning myself, but I had to learn, you know? There wasn't anyone else to do it, as I'm sure I've reiterated enough by now.

"You get used to it and just kind of _know_ after a while."

Claire just made another defeated noise.

"Well why don't_ you _do the tilling and planting? I'll go pull up weeds. At least I can do _that_ right." She suddenly stormed off to the far end of the farm.

"N-no, Claire! That's not…!" I called after her, but she was too far gone to hear me, or just wasn't listening. "…Not what I meant…"

Way to go, Rick. You haven't even known her for a day and yet you've already ticked her off, I scolded myself, rubbing my temples.

I finished tilling enough land for two bags-worth of seeds, all the while cursing myself for my actions.

My controlling nature often got me into people's bad books; namely, with my own sister. I hated the fact that I had to always take charge of things, but I suppose that was an inherent trait in me now.

Well, deciding that there was nothing I could do to change myself in an instant or alter the past, I plunked myself down in the shady refuge of the large apple tree on the farm for a rest.

Gosh, I thought, I really hope she isn't mad…

But somehow I was almost certain that even if she was, it wasn't anger directed at me. Probably more at herself, I realized suddenly.

Either way, Claire just didn't seem like the kind of person to just get randomly angry and hold a grudge against anyone, so this frustration must be stemming from something else.

It was really strange how I kept doing that—assuming I know someone who'd just moved here. I'd done it twice already!

A less poetic way to describe her would be 'easy to read', but it was so much more than just that.

Claire exuded this feeling.

You could feel like she'd been your bosom-buddy for your entire life just by her smile or like you were always welcome with a simple "hello". It was like she laid all that she was out in front of the world and all she had to offer was her happiness and confidence to anyone and everyone.

Surely I couldn't be the _only_ person to notice that?

No, her way of lighting up the darkest places with her shining personality had even affected Gray.

Claire had been the first person other than Mary (the local librarian) to get a genuine smile out of him, while he _worked _no less!

She was special. She just…was.

As I finished that thought, staring out at the slowly shifting clouds with glazed eyes, said new farmer walked out and sat heavily, releasing a pent up breath.

I didn't say anything and neither did she, at first, just choosing just to lean up against the tree with her eyes closed.

But she was the first to break the silence.

"About earlier… Sorry I just walked off like that. I know you were just trying to help. It's just…" She sat up.

I almost wanted to interject and say that it was fine, but something made me bite my tongue. She had more to say, and it seemed she needed to say it.

"I'm used to being independent," she started a bit slowly. "I've been on my own for years now and managed well enough. It's something new for me to suddenly start accepting help."

I nodded. I knew there had been something else bothering her, and that was it. Just a small case of pride.

I could empathize with her, almost. But perhaps it was just sympathy? I couldn't really tell.

"But," she said wistfully after a pause, "that was the city and this is farm life. I guess I'll just have to learn, right?" she turned to be and gave me another bright smile.

I returned it with a small smile of my own, mostly at how even her frazzled appearance with hair sticking out every which-way and slightly disheveled clothing couldn't detract from that aura of hers.

I heard a faint gurgling and Claire's eyes widened.

"Oh! I totally forgot about lunch…!" she sighed.

I laughed and brought out my lunch, setting it between us, and it was only then I had realized just how close we were, although it didn't really bother me like it normally would have. Huh…

"I've got enough here for the two of us."

The fried rice and jelly bread were easy enough to split between us, but the spa-boiled egg…? Well, let's say it was a little more challenging to tear in half and more than a little messy, being soft-boiled.

Over our meal, Claire told me about how she had moved from the city. How she had quite her job and moved out of her apartment to here upon reading an ad in the paper.

She thought that living on a farm was the excitement she was missing in her life. But then, when she had arrived, her ideal had been crushed by the decrepit state of the property.

I had never seen the farm after the previous owner had died, heck, I didn't even know the guy. But looking at the buildings and field now, I figured it must have been quite the discouraging sight. I mean, the field had been 'improved' lately and it still looked like a dogs breakfast, so I can only imagine how she had felt.

So, she said, she'd agreed to work and make a living here as best she could in Mineral Town, seeing as she didn't exactly have any money to get back to whence she came, in any case.

She was going to stay. Here, on this little nothing of a farm. In Mineral Town.

When she finished I felt a tremendous amount of pity for her, but more so, I felt amazed by her determination. She really had nothing to go back to... No fall-back plan—no nothing.

If this farm failed her…

I couldn't think about it.

If I had seen Claire as a strong person before, it only grew and multiplied.

I felt I had to do everything in my power to help her make this farm a success. I just couldn't see her leave this town.

I tried to ignore what that implied as we finished lunch.

I showed Claire how to sew the seeds and she watered them after.

We tried to make some fences for future livestock. Now, I say 'tried' because after carrying a couple stones from all corners of the field, dodging weeds, sticks, stumps and large out-croppings of rocks, one was pretty darn tired. We got about half of one done, trying to use the large boulders to our advantage

I was surprised at how much Claire could carry though; she stuffed 3 rocks in her rucksack and still managed to carry herself fairly well. I-- well, though I've grown accustomed to physical labor, I'm still not all that strong.

After the fence was given up for the day, Claire brought out her axe and asked me to collect some of the branches that lay littered around her field.

I was quite nervous about her and that axe… it looked just about as old and neglected as the hoe had and for that reason I kept a respectable distance from her at the side as she chopped. She chopped a small pile before deciding that nearly cleaving off her foot five times was enough for the day.

It somewhere around two in the afternoon, so we had the rest of the day to ourselves.

"I think there are some shippable grasses out on the mountain, do you want to look?" I suggested, since I figured she could use the income, even if only small.

Claire gave a weary nod without really looking at me and trudged behind as we made our way over the bridge on the south side of the farm.

She groaned as the incline started. I chuckled.

"It is a bit on the steep side in some parts, but it's not all that bad."

I walked off the path and pulled up some blue-coloured grass from the ground.

"Here, " I said, offering Claire the grass. "Chew on this. It''ll perk you up a bit."

She stopped and made a weird face at my offer, but too a small blade and chewed off a piece. She looked indifferent as she tried to figure out the taste, but shrugged and swallowed.

"No so bad, huh?"

She just shrugged and took a few more blades of the grass.

We filled her entire rucksack with green and blue grasses and even a few bamboo shoots.

As we worked further up the mountain, we reached Kappa Lake, Claire gasped.

"Wow," she said, taking a long look around. "It's so big! And the water looks so clear!"

I was aware we had been foraging for quite some time now…The late afternoon sun shone down upon the ripples of the lake which made wavy, flowing patterns on Claire's smiling face.

I sat out in the setting sun, content with all I had done for the day and happy just to let the wind run through my air and refresh me a bit.

Claire, who had apparently wandered off, came back over with two flowers; one with bright yellow petals and one that was white and puffy.

"What are theses called?" she asked. I was no botanist like Basil, father of the meek librarian, but I'd grown up around these flowers. Fancy Latin designations were for people who had too much time to memorize things, anyhow.

"That one," I pointed to the yellow one," is a Moon Drop flower, and _that_ one," I pointed to the white, almost spore-like flower, "is a Toy flower. Hey, where'd you find that?"

"What, the Toy? Oh, over there. There aren't all that many." She said, jabbing her thumb in the direction of Mother's Hill. (Mother's _Hill_? More like Mother's _Cliff, _if you ask me.)

"Ahh, my sister loves those." I said, stretching.

"Then here, take them. I don't really have any place to put them, anyway." Claire handed me the few flowers she had picked. "Tell her they're from us both."

I gave a small chuckle to that and carefully put the flowers inside my apron.

"Hey," I said, suddenly, making to stand up. "Want to go to the top of Mother's Hill?" it's got a great view."

Claire nodded eagerly and stood from her crouched position by a rabbit that had wandered into the lake clearing.

"Alright." I led her up another path which has the steepest incline, but she didn't seem to mind anymore. I suppose that grass had done the trick.

We had to cross another rickety bridge, which neither she nor I were all that thrilled to do. I swear, every time I cross that think, I'm sure it's going to snap, yet it never does. I prayed to the Goddess that if it were to give out, it wouldn't be right now.

It seemed my prayers were answered, since we both arrived on the other side in one piece.

The wind got more violent as we ascended, whipping out hair almost painfully around. Claire struggled to keep hers out of her face.

I saw her gape in awe as she peered over the edge. I wanted to reach out and pull her back from her precarious position, but I wasn't sure if that would be a great idea. One way or another, it would ruin the mood.

"You can see for miles!" she yelled over the wind.

"Yep! That—" I pointed to a barely visible village to the west. "That is Forget-Me-Not Valley! A farmer lives there, too! Nice place!"

She nodded in understanding, her head swiveling to take in the sights.

"I think I like it here, Rick!" she turned to me and the sun cast a dynamic shadow over her face. "It's beautiful!" her smiles warmed what the cool spring wind had numbed in me from my fingers to my toes. Goddess, I hoped she'd keep doing that.

…And selfishly, I hoped that she would only smile like that for me…

Se waved a hand in my face and I blushed when I found I'd been caught staring. But she only shook her head and let out a mirthful giggle I could barely hear over the howl on the Peak.

She motioned for us to descend.

We walked back to her farm, making light conversation, the sun at our backs casting long, lanky shadows on the ground.

I only really noticed then just how much taller I was than Claire: a little less than a head. Not that was really all that surprising; I'd always been pretty tall. Taller than my mom before I was eighteen. I don't think there are many people taller than me in Mineral Town. I don't know if that was something to be happy about, though, since I was the gauntest of any of the 'taller folks'.

When we had made our way up her property and to her almost dilapidated shack, I shuffled my feet before saying, "Alright, well… See you around," And turning to leave.

"Rick?" Claire called.

I turned back and raised my eyebrows, waiting for a response.

"W-well, first, thank you for today. I really appreciated it… Are you sure you don't want anything for all your work?"

We had talked about this on the walk back; today was _my_ way of welcoming Claire to the town.

"Second..." she began with some hesitation. "Do you… Would you maybe… Next Sunday…?"

She took my surprised expression the wrong way. "That is, only if you're free and want to. I could always repay you somehow, uh, s-sometime…" Her slight stutter was endearing, if nothing else, and the way that she wouldn't look at me and wrung her hands... It reminded me of a child asking for something or perhaps feeling guilty.

I found I was inexplicably happy that she had invited me back, but chalked it up as nothing more than the fact that she so desperately needed help to get this sorry farm up and running as soon as possible.

I grinned broadly and nodded, even though she wasn't looking. "It would be my pleasure."

At that, the blond looked up and beamed back, again I found myself captivated by that smile of hers. But this time I was careful not to seem like I was staring.

"Oh, right! Almost forgot to ask… What's the name of the farm?"

Claire looked at me, the setting sun giving her golden hair a glowing outline. It was... ethereal…

"Eternia farm."

* * *

I'll say it again, I read all my reviews, although I am to damn lazy to respond XD;; I really do appreciate the support~ I'm not doing this just so I have an archive of writing crap for my own purposes 8D;;

So, if you have any crits or suggestions, please feel free to leave them~! Hope you enjoyed and will stay tuned for the next chapter, when things will heat up juuuust a tiny little bit XD


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